The Prefontaine Classic, an

Oregon Track Club The Oregon Track Club (OTC) is an American running organization based in Eugene, Oregon. History Emerald Empire Athletic Association Formed by Bill Bowerman, the Emerald Empire Athletic Association (EEAA) was the predecessor to the Oregon Track C ...

event, is one of the premier

track and field Track and field is a sport that includes athletic contests based on running, jumping, and throwing skills. The name is derived from where the sport takes place, a running track and a grass field for the throwing and some of the jumping events ...

meets in the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

, held in

Eugene, Oregon Eugene ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Oregon. It is located at the southern end of the Willamette Valley, near the confluence of the McKenzie and Willamette rivers, about east of the Oregon Coast. As of the 2020 United States Census, Eu ...

. Every year it draws a world caliber field to compete at

Hayward Field Hayward Field is a track and field stadium in the northwest United States, located on the campus of the University of Oregon in Eugene, Oregon. It has been the home of the university's track and field teams since 1921, and was the on-campus ho ...

on the campus of the

University of Oregon The University of Oregon (UO, U of O or Oregon) is a public research university in Eugene, Oregon. Founded in 1876, the institution is well known for its strong ties to the sports apparel and marketing firm Nike, Inc, and its co-founder, billion ...

. Previously one of the

IAAF Grand Prix The IAAF Grand Prix was an annual, global circuit of one-day outdoor track and field competitions organized by the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF). It was created in 1985 as the IAAF's first seasonal track and field circu ...

events, it is now part of the

Diamond League The Diamond League is an annual series of elite track and field athletic competitions comprising fourteen of the best invitational athletics meetings. The series sits in the top tier of the World Athletics (formerly known as the IAAF) one-day mee ...

. The meet is one of the few international competitions to host the

imperial Imperial is that which relates to an empire, emperor, or imperialism. Imperial or The Imperial may also refer to: Places United States * Imperial, California * Imperial, Missouri * Imperial, Nebraska * Imperial, Pennsylvania * Imperial, Texa ...

distances of the

Mile run The mile run (1,760 yards or exactly 1,609.344 metres) is a middle-distance foot race. The history of the mile run event began in England, where it was used as a distance for gambling races. It survived track and field's switch to ...

and 2 Mile run.

History

The first Prefontaine Classic was held in 1975. The meet had its genesis with the Hayward Restoration Meets of 1973–74. The Hayward Restoration meets were launched to help replace the deteriorated wooden West Grandstands at Hayward Field. It was to become the "Bowerman Classic" in 1975 to honor longtime University of Oregon track coach

Bill Bowerman William Jay Bowerman (February 19, 1911 – December 24, 1999) was an American track and field coach and co-founder of Nike, Inc. Over his career, he trained 31 Olympic athletes, 51 All-Americans, 12 American record-holders, 22 NCAA champi ...

, and was scheduled for June 7. With the unexpected death of University of Oregon distance runner and Olympian

Steve Prefontaine Steve Roland "Pre" Prefontaine (January 25, 1951 – May 30, 1975) was an American long-distance runner who from 1973 to 1975 set American records at every distance from 2,000 to 10,000 meters. He competed in the 1972 Summer Olympics, and ...

in an automobile accident on May 30, the Oregon Track Club changed the name, with Bowerman's approval, on June 1; the first "Pre Classic" was held six days later.

Nike Nike often refers to: * Nike (mythology), a Greek goddess who personifies victory * Nike, Inc., a major American producer of athletic shoes, apparel, and sports equipment Nike may also refer to: People * Nike (name), a surname and feminine give ...

has been the primary sponsor since 1978. The 2019 edition moved to Stanford's Cobb Track and Angell Field,

Palo Alto, California Palo Alto (; Spanish language, Spanish for "tall stick") is a charter city in the northwestern corner of Santa Clara County, California, United States, in the San Francisco Bay Area, named after a Sequoia sempervirens, coastal redwood tree kno ...

because of restoration of Hayward Field in anticipation of the IAAF World Athletics Championships in 2021. The 2020 edition was cancelled due to the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identif ...

World records

Over the course of its history, four

world records A world record is usually the best global and most important performance that is ever recorded and officially verified in a specific skill, sport, or other kind of activity. The book ''Guinness World Records'' and other world records organization ...

have been set at the Prefontaine Classic.

Notable performances and records

Alan Webb's high school record

At the 2001 Prefontaine Classic, Alan Webb ran 3:53.43 in the Bowerman Mile and broke

Jim Ryun James Ronald Ryun (born April 29, 1947) is an American former Republican politician and Olympic track and field athlete, who at his peak was widely considered the world's top middle-distance runner. He won a silver medal in the 1500 m at the ...

's national

high school A secondary school describes an institution that provides secondary education and also usually includes the building where this takes place. Some secondary schools provide both '' lower secondary education'' (ages 11 to 14) and ''upper seconda ...

record that had stood for 36 years. This was also the fastest mile by an American in three years.

Maria Mutola in the 800 m

Maria de Lurdes Mutola won 16 consecutive (1993-2008) women's 800 m races at the Pre Classic.

Meet records

Men

Women

Notes

en route ''En route'' may refer to: * ''En Route'' (novel), an 1895 novel by Joris-Karl Huysmans * ''En Route'' (film), a 2004 German movie directed by Jan Krüger * En-route chart, in aeronautics * enRoute (credit card), Air Canada's credit card divisi ...

in Mile *

in 2-Mile

References

External links

Diamond League - Eugene Official Web Site

Official Prefontaine Classic website

Official Steve Prefontaine website

Pre Classic Results / Records Home
at RunnerSpace.com {{coord, 44.042, -123.071, region:US_type:landmark, display=title Track and field competitions in the United States Recurring sporting events established in 1973 Diamond League IAAF Grand Prix Sports in Eugene, Oregon Sports competitions in Oregon 1973 establishments in Oregon Annual events in Eugene, Oregon Track and field in Oregon Annual track and field meetings IAAF World Outdoor Meetings